Beauty out of tragedy: Youth group spruces up corner shop where barber was slain

PRICHARD, Alabama – To Shirley Richardson, the fresh red and white paint being applied to Main Street Barbershop – the site of her husband's murder in 2011 – has a special meaning.

"It symbolizes something, I guess the blood and purity," said Richardson as she stood at the corner of W. Main and Garrison in Prichard Thursday. A Florida youth group is landscaping and painting the shop where her husband, Sam, was killed during a robbery attempt. The murder of the generous 60-year-old barber and minister, a pillar in the community, spurred a rally, a march and two convictions.

The project came about because of an unusual connection with Light of the Village, located two miles away. One of the men convicted in the barber's killing, Andrew Amison, was well known at the inner-city Christian ministry. While attending Amison's court appearances, Light of the Village Executive Director John Eads had handed his card to the victim's daughter, Samantha Richardson.

One day, she called him. "I was kind of surprised," Eads said. "We talked about their vision for the building. I said, 'What would you think about (us) coming and giving it a makeover?' They were real excited about that."

This week, several teenagers who are part of a 100-member youth group from South Tampa Fellowship in Florida were trimming trees and bushes, and painting Mr. Sam's shop. The plan was to spruce up the little storefront and reinforce the cottage at the back to keep out vagrants. Other teens from the group were working at summer camps run by Light of the Village.

"A place where tragedy happened can still be beautiful because of God's restoration," said student pastor Rob Flint, who is leading the youth group.

Eads said that "only God can bring the two groups together."

For the past two years, the barbershop has been suspended in time. In one corner stands the heavy antique chair where customers sat for a trim. Attached to one side are straps used for sharpening razors and scissors. The carpet has been pulled up, but a sink and a wide mirror remain.

"He always wanted this place to look decent on this corner," said Shirley Richardson. She said she'd like to keep the little shop in the family, possibly even turn it into a community center – something similar to Light of the Village.

Her husband, she said, loved giving back to the community and helping young people. He would sell snacks to students who attended the former campus of Mattie T. Blount High School across the street. He served as an overseer with the Apostolic Overcoming Holy Church of God, a leadership position that had him visiting various churches.

"He was a pillar in the community," she said. "People looked up to him."

On the day in 2011 Richardson was killed, he had been planning the family's Thanksgiving Day meal. The community was stunned to learn of his death. In the past year, Amison and Broderick Brown have been convicted of felony murder in the killing, with each sentenced to two 32-year prison terms.

Shirley Richardson said she believes that justice has been served in the death of her husband, to whom she would have been married 38 years this August. "I can't say that I will ever forgive them, but let bygones be bygones," she said.

This week, she cried when she first visited the Tampa volunteers as they worked. But these tears were different than the many she has shed over the loss of her husband.

"For a while, it was really hard to pass this area," she said. "(Now) I can pass with joy, knowing that something good has come out of it."